Effect of 5-HT2A Receptor Polymorphisms, Work Stressors, and Social Support on Job Strain among Petroleum Workers in Xinjiang, China

Risk factors and prediction model for mental health in Chinese soldiers

Introduction

This study aimed to explore potential risk factors for mental health concerns, and the prediction model for mental health concerns in Chinese soldiers was constructed through combined eligible risk factors.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was performed on soldiers under direct command from Gansu, Sichuan, and Chongqing in China, and the soldiers were selected by cluster convenient sampling from 16 October 2018 to 10 December 2018. The Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90) and three questionnaires (Military Mental Health Status Questionnaire, Military Mental Health Ability Questionnaire, and Mental Quality Questionnaire for Army Men) were administered, including demographics, military careers, and 18 factors.

Results

Of 1,430 Chinese soldiers, 162 soldiers presented mental disorders, with a prevalence of 11.33%. A total of five risk factors were identified, including serving place (Sichuan vs. Gansu: OR, 1.846, 95% CI: 1.028-3.315, P = 0.038; Chongqing vs. Gansu: OR, 3.129, 95% CI, 1.669-5.869, P = 0.003), psychosis (OR, 1.491, 95% CI, 1.152-1.928, P = 0.002), depression (OR, 1.482, 95% CI, 1.349-1.629, P < 0.001), sleep problems (OR, 1.235, 95% CI, 1.162-1.311, P < 0.001), and frustration (OR, 1.050, 95% CI, 1.015-1.087, P = 0.005). The area under the ROC curve by combining these factors was 0.930 (95% CI: 0.907-0.952) for predicting mental disorders in Chinese soldiers.

Conclusion

The findings of this study demonstrate that mental disorders and onset in Chinese soldiers can be predicted on the basis of these three questionnaires, and the predictive value of the combined model was high.

The interaction of occupational stress, mental health, and cytokine levels on sleep in Xinjiang oil workers: A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Sleep occupies one third of a person's life, and good sleep quality is an important factor to ensure good health.

PURPOSE

This study investigated and analyzed the occupational stress, mental health and sleep quality of oil workers, analyzed the effects of occupational stress and mental health on sleep, and explored the effects of the interaction between occupational stress, mental health and cytokines on sleep.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this study, stratified cluster random sampling was used to conduct a cross-sectional survey on the occupational stress, mental health and sleep quality of 1,141 oil workers in the Occupational Health Examination Department of Karamay Central Hospital, from June 2019 to January 2020, and 30% of the participants were randomly selected for measurement of their cytokine levels: interleukin 2 (IL-2), interleukin 6 (IL-6), interleukin 8 (IL-8), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α). The objectives were to analyze the effects of occupational stress and mental health on sleep quality, and to explore the effects of occupational stress, mental disorders and cytokine interactions on sleep.

RESULTS

There were 646 individuals (56.6%) who suffered from sleep disorders; the incidence of sleep disorders differed according to sex, age, professional title, working years, type of work and shift (P < 0.05). The scores for occupational stress, mental health, and sleep quality were positively correlated (P < 0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that age (30-45 years) (OR = 1.753, 95% CI: 1.067-2.881), junior college and above (OR = 1.473, 95% CI: 1.025-2.118), borehole operation (OR = 2.689, 95% CI: 1.508-4.792), extraction of oil (OR = 2.405, 95% CI: 1.229-4.705), drilling (OR = 1.791, 95% CI: 1.017-3.155), shift work (OR = 2.144, 95% CI: 1.615-2.846), occupational stress (OR = 1.007, 95% CI: 1.002-1.013), and mental disorders (OR = 1.020, 95% CI: 1.009-1.032) are risk factors for sleep disorders. In the high occupational stress group and the mental disorders group as the control group, the results showed that the interaction between IL-2 and moderate occupational stress (OR = 0.778, 95% CI: 0.778-0.942), IL-2 and non-mental disorders (OR = 0.398, 95% CI: 0.398-0.468) were protective factors for the occurrence of sleep disorders. The results of structural equation modeling analysis showed that occupational stress and mental health had positive predictive effects on IL-2 level and sleep quality [normalized path coefficients (β) were 0.10\0.06\0.05\0.71, respectively]. Occupational stress had a direct positive predictive effect on mental disorder (β = 0.25), and sleep disorder had a direct negative predictive effect on IL-2 concentration (β = -0.21).

CONCLUSION

Oil workers have serious sleep problems, so effective measures should be taken to reduce occupational stress and relieve mental health problems, and cytokine levels can be used as a predictor of sleep disorders.

Cross-Sectional Survey of Mental Health Risk Factors and Comparison of the Monoamine oxidase A Gene DNA Methylation Level in Different Mental Health Conditions among Oilfield Workers in Xinjiang, China

The incidence of psychological problems among occupational groups is becoming increasingly more serious, and adverse psychological conditions will seriously affect the working ability of occupational groups and harm the health of their bodies. This study adopted a multi-stage stratified cluster sampling method to conduct a cross-sectional survey on the mental health of 3631 oil workers in Karamay, Xinjiang from March 2017 to June 2018. The mental health status of oil workers was evaluated using the Symptom Checklist-90, and mental health risk factors were evaluated. The correlation between the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene and mental health was analyzed, and the DNA methylation level of the MAOA gene was compared between the normal group and the abnormal group. The results show the incidence of mental health problems among oil workers according to differences in age, nationality, type of work, length of service, professional title, shift work, and marital status. The evaluation of mental health risk factors revealed that shift work, occupational stress, and high payment/low return affect mental health. The somatization scores of different genotypes of rs6323 in the MAOA gene were statistically significant (p < 0.05), suggesting that the somatization scores of different genotypes of rs6323 were different. According to the average rank, the TT genotype group had the highest score, followed by the GT genotype group, and the GG genotype group had the lowest score. The level of DNA methylation in the abnormal group was lower than that in the normal group (p < 0.05). The results suggested that occupational mental health can be enhanced by improving shift work, reducing stress, and balancing effort and reward. This preliminary investigation suggests that methylation status can affect mental health, indicating that methylation level may be a predictor of mental health status.

Cross-Sectional Survey on the Relationship Between Occupational Stress, Hormone Levels, and the Sleep Quality of Oilfield Workers in Xinjiang, China

The impact of psychosocial factors on health has received increased attention. This study employed a multi-stage hierarchical cluster sampling method and a cross-sectional survey was conducted from March to August 2017. By studying 2116 oilfield workers based in Karamay, Xinjiang, the relationship between occupational stress, blood hormone levels, and sleep was analyzed. Occupational stress was measured using the internationally accepted Occupational Stress Inventory Revised Edition (OSI-R) questionnaire and sleep disorders were measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire. The study found that the sleep quality of respondents was not high and the incidence of sleep disorders was 36.67%. The higher the level of occupational stress, the higher the incidence of sleep disorders. Irregular shifts can affect sleep quality and individuals with high-level professional titles experience a higher incidence of sleep disorders than those with low-level titles. The total score of the PSQI was different among the low, medium, and high stress groups. The higher the level of stress, the higher the scores of subjective sleep quality, sleep disorder, and daytime dysfunction. The scores of the PSQI, subjective sleep quality, sleep time, sleep disturbance, and daytime dysfunction in the high-stress group were higher than those in the low stress group. A case-control study found that the concentration of glucocorticoids in the sleep disorder positive group was lower than that in the sleep disorder negative group. The results of the regression analysis showed that glucocorticoid is a protective factor for sleep disorders (OR = 0.989, 95% CI: 0.983-0.995), suggesting that the higher the level of glycosaminoglycan, the less likely the subject is to have sleep disorders. For example, in the case of high occupational stress, the interaction between low and moderate occupational stress levels and glucocorticoids is a protective factor for sleep disorders.

Associations between erectile dysfunction and psychological disorders (depression and anxiety): A cross-sectional study in a Chinese population

The present cross-sectional survey was performed to evaluate the prevalences and correlations of depression and anxiety among Chinese erectile dysfunction (ED) men. Between February 2017 and January 2019, male patients with or without ED treated in andrology clinic and urology clinic were enrolled in the investigation. All enrolled patients were required to fill in the International Index of Erectile Function Questionnaire (IIEF-5), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7) which intended to evaluate the diagnosis and severity of ED, depression and anxiety respectively. Of the 958 included participants, 79.82% (613/768) and 79.56% (611/768) ED patients appeared to have anxiety and depression; 13.68% (26/190) of men without ED had anxiety and depression. In addition, young ED patients (age ≤35 years) and long ED duration patients (duration >12 months) had higher incidences and severities of anxiety and depression (p < .05). After adjusting the age, IIEF-5 was negatively correlated with PHQ-9 (adjusted r = -.653, p < .001) and GAD-7 scores (adjusted r = -.607, p < .001). The prevalences of anxiety and depression were 79.82% and 79.56% in Chinese ED patients. The prevalences and severities of anxiety and depression increased as the ED severity increased. Based on the high incidences of anxiety and depression among Chinese ED patients, clinicians are supposed to pay more attention to early diagnosis and therapy of psychiatric symptoms for ED patients, especially among young patients and patients with long ED duration.

Associations between occupational stress and demographic characteristics in petroleum workers in the Xinjiang arid desert

Owing to the transformation of the biomedical model of health, more and more professionals pay close attention to the occupational social psychological factors, such as occupational stress. Due to the socioeconomic impact of occupational stress and the petroleum workers stationed in the unique environment in Xinjiang, a cross-sectional study was carried out between May and December 2016 to investigate the relationship between occupational stress and demographic characteristics. A total of 1480 workers were selected. Occupational stress was evaluated with the Occupational Stress Inventory-Revised Edition. The findings of the present study revealed that the values of the Occupational Roles Questionnaire results (t = 9.266, P < .001) and Personal Strain Questionnaire results (t = 21.381, P < .001) were found to be higher than the national normal. Personal Resources Questionnaire values (t = -17.575, P < .001) were found to be lower than the national normal in petroleum workers stationed in the arid desert, and suggested a strong correlation between occupational stress and demographic characteristics. These data provide evidence that different demographic characteristics are associated with different occupational stress levels in petroleum workers stationed in the arid desert.

Relationship between Occupational Stress, 5-HT2A Receptor Polymorphisms and Mental Health in Petroleum Workers in the Xinjiang Arid Desert: A Cross-Sectional Study

At present, there is growing interest in research examining the relationship between occupational stress and mental health. Owing to the socioeconomic impact of occupational stress and the unique environment of petroleum workers in Xinjiang, a cross-sectional study was carried out between April and December 2015 to investigate the relationship between occupational stress, 5-hydroxytryptamine receptor (5-HTR2A) genotype, and mental health. A total of 1485 workers were selected. The Symptom Checklist 90 was used to assess nine classes of psychological symptoms. Work-related stressors were evaluated using the Occupational Stress Inventory-Revised Edition. Levels of 5-HTR2A (the Tl02C and A-1438G single nucleotide polymorphism in the 5-HTR2A gene) were measured by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). The findings of the present study revealed a high prevalence rate of mental health problems (40.29%) in petroleum workers stationed in the arid desert, and suggested a strong correlation between occupational stress and mental health. The TC and CC genotype of Tl02C were found to be protective factors against mental health problems (odds ratio (OR) = 0.455, 95% confidence interval (CI): = 0.269–0.771, odds ratio (OR) = 0.340, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.162–0.716). AG and GG genotype of A-1438G [odds ratio (OR) 1 = 2.729, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.433–5.195; odds ratio (OR) 2 = 2.480, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.221–5.037] were revealed as risk factors. These data provide evidence that occupational stress and 5-HTR2A gene polymorphism contributes to the incidence of mental health problems.